• I started judo in 1961. I was an economic student and my classmate and best friend Erika Mešterová persuaded me to try the sport. At the time our judo facilities were in a small building in Petrov Sad, Košice. We had to share the facilities with the TJ (Telovýchovná jednota) Lokomotíva Košice wrestlers and boxers. The room where we practiced was covered with soft mats, more suited to wrestling than for judo. The building wasn’t heated so in the winter when we came to train, the mats were covered with a layer of frost. We had to wear socks on our feet, otherwise our feet would freeze. In such cold facilities no one took it easy during training. Everyone wanted to warm up quickly with a lot of movement. After training we showered under ice-cold water.

• After completion of the indoor swimming pool in Košice in 1963, our building became part of the swimming community, so we no longer had a place to train. In early September the team organized a march in the center of town with a goal to find a new gym. The event was a success and for some time we rolled around in Room 4 of the Technical University’s dormitory on Vysokoškolska ulice (street). Later we moved to the school gymnasium on Gemerská street. We also bought our own mats, ordered by Robert Dusil somewhere in Bohemia. The training facilities weren’t only for judoka so we only had a few reserved hours each week. The girls needed to train with the boys. Men trained under the guidance of Vašek and Robert Dusil, and the girls were under the leadership of Karol Dusil. Each workout started with laying the mats and stretching the canvas.

• The following school year we moved to the Cadets facilities on Komenského ulici. There we had separate training from the boys, and never trained with them again. In later years we also trained on Podhradová. When I first arrived, the girls were trained by Juraj Mazánek, aka. Hoszu. After a short time he was replaced by Dušan Halász, who we called Marmot. When he departed to military service Karol Dusil took over. Kajo, as we all called him, gave his entire soul to coaching. The first championships titles for Czechoslovakia were awarded to Julka Tóthová in Nuremberg, Germany in 1962 (Unfortunately she is no longer among us). Next champions were Božena Glaubicova-Mikušákova and Hanka Demáčkova in Košice in 1966. The most successful year for women’s Košice judo was in 1967. The Czechoslovakian championship that year was held in Žilina. Winning in their weight classes were Juca Ujjobbágyova, Erika Tordová-Királyová, Valika Zelenayová-Záhradníková and Maja Polončáková. In 1968 in Prague, additional championship titles were won by Milka Kojecká-Mišková and Božena Glaubicova. Gold metals were also awarded to Marta Ujjobágyová and Magda Antolíková. At that time, Košice women’s judo was the best team in Czechoslovakia. In 1968 in Košice took first place in the unofficial national championships. Kajo trained the women until he immigrated to Canada in September 1969.

• Košice Judo

If you missed my previous posts on Košice Judo, you’ll find links to them here: